Tie form



Oct. 14, 1958 H. SHILLER 2,856,107

TIE FORM 2 SheetsSheet 1 Filed April 29, 1957 I INVENTOR.

HFIR RY B. SHILLER BY W 5%; HTTURNEY Oct. 14, 1958 Filed April 29, 1957 H. B. SHILLQER 2,856,107

;IIE FORM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 PIE. 5.

INVENTOR' HFIRR'Y B. 5H|LLER HTTORNE'Y United States Patent TIE FORM Harry B. Shiller, New York, N. Y.

Application April 29, 1957, Serial No. 655,804

2 Claims. (Cl. 223-65) This invention relates to a device for shaping a mans four-in-hand necktie and for maintaining said necktie in a smooth, unwrinkled condition for future use.

The material of a mans tubular four-in-hand type necktie, especially of the less expensive kind, is liable to become wrinkled, distorted and curled at the wide end edge of the necktie thereby making the necktie unsightly in appearance and reducing the useful life of the necktie.

It is a principal object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a device for shaping a mans four-inhand type necktie, for preventing wrinkling, distortion and curling of the necktie material and for maintaining the necktie in a neat and orderly fashion when draped over a necktie rack or when folded and placed in the drawer of a dresser and the like.

Another object of the invention is to provide a necktie former or shaper that is adapted for use with neckties of various sizes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a necktie former or shaper that is simple in construction, that lends itself to mass production and that can be manufactured and sold at a reasonable cost.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a necktie former embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a similar view but showing the necktie former in operative position in a mans four-in-hand necktie,

the necktie being shown in dot-dash lines.

Fig. 3 is an edge view of the necktie former.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view through the necktie former taken on the plane of the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the plane of the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a View similar to Fig. 2 of a modified form of the invention.

Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view taken on the plane of the line 77 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the plane of the line 88 of Fig. 6.

Referring to the drawings in detail, a necktie former embodying my invention is shown in Fig. 1 and is incated generally at 15. This necktie former comprises an elongated U-shaped body 16 formed of thin light gauge spring wire, round in cross section. The body consists of a bight portion 17 and leg portions 18, 18, the leg portions merging gracefully into the bight portions by means of curved corners 19, 19. The body is dimensioned so as to be substantially the width of a standard size mans four-in-hand necktie at its wide end. At the free ends of the leg portions, the wire is bent and Patented Oct. '14, 1958 ice turned upon itself to form loops 20, 20. It will be noted that the wire is bent laterally outwardly and that the extreme ends 21, 21 of the wire are in contact with the outer sides of the legs so that said ends are protected and so that there are no protruding portions on the body. The bight portion, leg portions and loops are all disposed in a single plane as shown in Fig. 3.

The inner surface of the inner reach of each loop 20 is flattened as indicated at 22, the flat portions of the loops being in opposed relation as shown in Fig. 1.

The necktie former is particularly designed for use with a mans standard four-in-hand type necktie 25 formed with a tapered body having a wide end 26 as shown in Fig. 2. This necktie is usually tubular and is provided with a strip of burlap 27 or other inexpensive material on the inside thereof extending substantially the length thereof to give the necktie shape and body. The strip 27 is basted to the inner surface of the rear side of the necktie by a line of slip stitching 28 to prevent lateral displacement of the strip. The stitching usually has a loose free end 29 at the wide end of the necktie to permit longitudinal shifting of the stitching, and said loose end is usually knotted as indicated at 30 to prevent unraveling.

In use, the light portion 1'7 of the necktie former is adapted to serve as a handle. In order to insert the necktie former into a necktie, the leg portions 18, 18 are manually pinched or pressed slightly toward each other by the fingers of the user and the looped end of the necktie former initially manually inserted between the folds of the necktie into the open wide end 26 of the necktie, with the loops 20, 2t} aligned with the creases in the longitudinal side edges of the necktie. Pressure on the leg portions is then released, whereupon the loops due to the inherent springiness of the material of the necktie former expand into the inner grooves formed by said side edges of the necktie thereby pressing said side edges laterally outwardly and stretching the material of the front panel or surface of the necktie into a taut, smooth condition. The wide end of the necktie is then grasped by the fingers and the necktie is drawn over the body of the necktie former, with the leg portions 18, 18 riding in said inner grooves and stretching the material during the inward travel of the body. The side pressure of the material of the necktie against the leg portions 18, 18 as it is pulled over the body of the necktie former causes the loops 20, 20 to b moved toward each other until they are in contact with each other as shown in Fig. 2. At this time, the body of the necktie former is completely covered by the material of the necktie and the flattened surfaces 22 of the loops are in face-to-face contact, thereby preventing said loops from buckling or slipping into overlapped relation. The dead center line of the body of the necktie former during its travel is substantially on the line of stitching 28 and the ends 21 of the loops being disposed on the outside are remote from said line of stitching cannot catch in and damage the stitching.

It will be noted from Fig. 2 that the outer surfaces of the leg portions 18, 18 and the outer surfaces of the loops 20, 20 are defined by a straight line when the necktie former is positioned inside the necktie so that there is a continuous lateral outward pressure against the side edges of the necktie thereby keeping the front surface of the necktie in a taut, smooth, unwrinkled and uncurled condition, thereby preserving the neat appearance and the period of usefulness of the necktie.

The modified form of necktie former 15 shown in Figs. 6 to 8, inclusive, differs from the form shown in Figs. 1 to 55, inclusive, in that the material of the leg portions 18, 18' is bent inwardly as indicated at 32, 32

to form recesses 33, 33 opening outwardly to receive 3 slidably the free ends 21', 21 of the body. Furthermore, the top ends of the loops 20, 20' are flattened and reduced in diameter as indicated at 34, 34. By reason of this construction, the loops 20, 20' are adapted to. flatten out transversely or bulge as shown in dotdash lines in order to accommodate the necktie former to neckties of different widths.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

l. A necktie former comprising an elongated U- shaped body of light gauge round spring wire having loops on the free ends of the leg portions thereof, said looped end constituting the entrance end of the body, said leg portions being indented at the junctures thereof with the loops to form recesses, the free ends of the loops being disposed outwardly of the space between the leg portions and slidable in said recesses whereby the configuration of the loops is adapted to be changed,

sa d loops having opposed flattened portions on the surfaces of the inner reaches thereof to prevent lateral slipping of said surfaces upon contacting each other.

2. A necktie former comprising an elongated U- shaped body of light gauge round spring Wire having loops on the free ends of the leg portions thereof, said looped end constituting the entrance end of the body said leg portions being indented at the junctures thereof with the loops to form recesses, the free ends of the loops being disposed outwardly of the space between the leg portions and slidable in said recesses whereby the configuration of the loops is adapted to be changed, said loops having opposed flattened portions on the surfaces o-f the inner reaches thereof to prevent lateral slipping of said surfaces upon contacting each other, said loops each having a flattened portion of reduced diameter at the top thereof to facilitate change of configuration thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,038,786 Green Apr. 28, 1936 2,272,051 Phelps Feb. 3, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 647,122 France Nov. 20, 1928 

